Golf ball and method of making the same



,April21, 1925. I 1,534,104 J. R. GAMMETER GOLF BALL ANDMETHOD OF MAKING THE SAME Fig.1 1

Filed May 26, 1921 Pa tented Apr. 21, 1925. I

UNITED STATES JOHN R. GAMM'ETER, or

on NEW YORK, N.

AKRON, oHIo, ASSIGN'OB To'rHE B. FQGOODR ICH COMPANY,

Y.. A conroRA'rfoN on NEW YORK.

GOLF .B ALL AND METHOD OF MAKING THE SAME.

Application filed May 26,

T all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JOHN. R. GAMMETER. a citizen of the'Unlted States, residing at Akron, in the county of Summit and State of Ohio, have invented a certain new and useful Golf Same, ofwhich the following is a specification.

This invention relates to the art of manufacturing golf-balls containing a mobile core material, and its principal objects are to prevent a deforming of the spherical golf "ball cores or inner core members when placing layers of rubber thereon, and to secure greater uniformity in golfshalls and to increase their flight. L

Fig. 1 of the accompanying drawings is a sectional view showing a mold containing core material in spherical cavities in which the material is set.

Fig. 2 is'an endview of an open freezing chamber containing the cores.

Fig. 3 is a sectional view of a set corepellet. 1

Fig. 4 is a sectional view showing the same covered with an unvulcanized rubber capping sto'ck.

Fig. '5 is a similar .view showing a vulcanized rubber envelope containing the core in a fluid state. J

Fig. 6 is a sectional viewof a frozen core material capped with a vulcanized rubber cover.

Ball and Method of Making the 1921. Serial No..472,734.

ture in spherical cavities in a two part mold ll in which the mixture may be placed by pouring it through openings 12 in the i1 pper mold member before the liquid has cooled sufficiently to set. The mixture upon 0001-' $0 ing, which may be hastened by placing the molds between the platens of a coldplaten press or in a freezingchamber 13 provided withcoohng pipes 14. sets to a jell having Sllll'lClGIlt stiffness to hold its spherical shape If deunder relatively light pressures. sired the cooling may be continued until the spherical core membersflare frozen. A set spherical pellet 15 shown in cross section in 3 is then removed from the mold,

i the sprue 1.6 scraped off and the pellet or inner core member covered with a pair of cup-shaped pieces of vul an zable rubber capping stock 17, 17, w ose edges are squeezed together to make a seam,l8, as indicated in Fig. 4.

The raw core'thus formed is then placed is spherical cavities in a vulcanizing mold and heat is applied to vulcanize the rubber and weld the cups 17, 17 together forming a single rubber envelope 19, the heatalso reducing the gelatinous core material to a liquid state as indicated at 20 (Fig. 5), destroy-- ing its tendency to set on cooling. This latter feature, however, I do not claim as my m vention. When employing a normallyliquid substance for the inner core member the liquid is frozen in the mold 11 to give this member sufficient stiffness tohold its Fig. 7 is a side elevation of a partially wound ball.

Fig. 8 is a side elevation, partly in section, showing the complete ball.

Fig. 9 is'a side elevation of a partially wound pellet and shows a modified method of applying a rubber envelope to the core material.

My invention comprises a freezing ofa spherical pelletfof a core material which is composed of a mobile substance such, for example, as the viscous liquids commonly employed, or a gelatinoussubstance such as a g as sha e during the capping or other covering ope ations. i

The completed cores are then'placed in .the cup shaped depressions 21 of a tray 22, in the freezing chamber, whose tempera ture is preferably maintained at about minus 40 F. to freeze the liquid 20 to a solid cake 23 (Fig. 6) which will hold-its spherical shape under the pressure of the rolls of a tape winding apparatus. The temperature of the freezing chamber may be varied according to the freezing point of the core material. Where the vulcanized rubber in the envelope is not stiff enoughto retain the cores in spherical form during the freezing of the liquid, suitable complete form members may be employed.

A frozen core 24 is then laced in a winding apparatus,-'tense rub r ta e or thread 25 (Figs. 7 and 8) is applie and p the wearing cover 26 of gutta-percha or ue-glycerme mix, but the invention is not wholly limited to the use of these materials and may be employed with any core material which is not stiff enough to hold its spherical sha e in a ball winding machine or other golfall forming ap aratus.

In the drawing,xin which Figs. 1 to 8'illustrate a preferred method of'carrying out my process, 10 is a liquid gelatiniz ng' mixl desired thickness and 29 cal core member center which will retain its shape during positions in which 30 further makes it similar material is then shaped about the thread windings in any suitable manner.

After the tense windings have been applied the core material gradually thaws and returns to its liquid state.

This process may be modified in various ways. as, for example, by winding an unvuIcanized rubber tape 27 onto a frozen pellet 28 (Fig. 9) to form a layer of the heating the [core to vulcanize the rubber and unite the windings into an impervious envelope, or by covering a frozen spherical core member with an uncured rubber envelope, cold curing the envelope in any suitable manner as by u dipping itin sulphur chloride, the inner core member remaining frozen, and winding the stiff core with rubber tape.

The freezing of the pellet or inner spheriprovides a rigid spherical said material, while frozen,

flight than when a soft core is first wound with low tension windings by hand to give the core the desired stiffness.

By' freezing the inner, spherical 7 core member before applying the enclosing member 19 Fig. 5), or 27 (Fig. 9), thereto,'I am ena led to obtain a perfectly symmetrical core having an envelope of substantially uniform thickness throughout,

and soto provide a perfectly balanced ball with less difficulty than is experienced when the liquid or softcore material is enclosed in an envelope before being frozen. Facility and economy in manipulation of such material isveflectedfiby freezing it before building any part ofthe. ball thereon,

and bunching of the covering material,

such as occurs in the tying of the mouth of a liquid-enclosing bag, is avoided.

I claim:

The method of making a golf ball which comprises producing a frozen ellet of ,nor-

er enclosing in an' im erforate, vulcanizable-rubber"envelope, t en vulcanizing said envelope, said material, and, while it is so frozen, applying additional material to said envelope. v

' In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand this 20th day of May, 1921.

JOHN B. GAMMETEB.

mally mobile material, therea again freezing 

